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Description:
This 35 mile out and back UTV, ATV and Off Road trail
starts off easy then becomes moderate ending with a difficult ascent into Packer. The trail
begins right off of the Table Mesa Road exit on Interstate I-17 and will take you back in time to the late 1880s and the Tip Top Mine and into the town of Packer.
Staging begins on the West side of the I-17 Table Mesa Road Exit. Staging is on the right when the road turns to dirt. Follow Table Mesa Road for approximately 3.5 miles. You will come to a gate with a lot of Private Property and Warning signs. This is the start of a well marked private property boundary area, the road however is open to public UTV, ATV and Off Road vehicles. Once past the gate you will come upon the Auqa Fria Wash, depending on the time of year it might be too deep to cross. On this ride in April it was only a couple of feet deep and there was no trouble crossing it with the Polaris RZR in low gear and All Wheel Drive.
Once through the Aqua Fria Wash, at approximately 4.07 miles, you will come to the a large intersection in the so called town of Gillette, the trail to the right takes you to the Tip Top Mine. The only other major intersection is at mile 6.58. There is an old horse corral, be sure to follow the green arrow on the rock and bear left here. After that the trail is really easy to navigate to the Tip Top Mine but does start to get a bit rough and slightly moderates as you descend to the magnificent Cottonwood Creek and the canyon it carved out. The trail follows the breathtakingly beautiful canyon and crosses the creek 4 or 5 times. At approximately mile 11.3 mile you stumble into the Tip Top Mining Camp.
The trail does continue on and passes another old wooden corral and then an large, old, metal horse stable appears at approximately mile 13.3. The trail to the right continues on to the town of Parker.
The approximately 4.4 mile trail to Packer is steep, rough and not for the novice or fainthearted. The trail does offer long distance views of Lake Pleasant and on a clear day Downtown Phoenix. There are some metal shacks to explore in Packer.
Give yourself at least 5-6 hours to climb to the town of Packer or 3-4 hours to the Tip Top Mine Ruins and Horse Stable.
Directions: From
Phoenix, take I-17 north to Exit 236, Table Mesa Road. Make a left and then a right to the staging area.
Staging: There is a large staging area. There are no facilities.
Fees. No fees or permits required. It is BLM Land
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Polaris Ranger RZR at the Tip Top Mine Ruins
Table Mesa Road UTV, ATV and Off Road Trail
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